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Scientists claim radiation from handsets are to blame for mysterious 'colony collapse' of bees

By Geoffrey Lean and Harriet Shawcross

Published: 15 April 2007

It seems like the plot of a particularly far-fetched horror film. But some scientists suggest that our love of the mobile phone could cause massive food shortages, as the world's harvests fail.
They are putting forward the theory that radiation given off by mobile phones and other hi-tech gadgets is a possible answer to one of the more bizarre mysteries ever to happen in the natural world - the abrupt disappearance of the bees that pollinate crops. Late last week, some bee-keepers claimed that the phenomenon - which started in the US, then spread to continental Europe - was beginning to hit Britain as well.
The theory is that radiation from mobile phones interferes with bees' navigation systems, preventing the famously homeloving species from finding their way back to their hives. Improbable as it may seem, there is now evidence to back this up.

But since you asked. The bees around the country are dying at an alarming rate. Some beekeepers have experienced losses over 60%. Beekeepers have been beaten down by an unknown disease. The name of the disease is Colony Collapse Disorder. By the way the Romans also had the same disease run through their colonies and gave it the same name.

We are happy for the press the industry is receiving about the importance of honey bees to our food chain. The disease today has no answer but many theories. One being the cell towers are causing the bees to loss their navigational bearings. Another theory stats that GMO, Genetically Modified Organism, have caused the bees to become disoriented. Those two are assuming the bees are losing their way home. By the way, bees fly up to 5 miles to collect nectar, pollen, and water for the colonies.

The other theories deal with the with miss use of miticides, antibiotics, and food supplements. These all hold some truth but no one theory holds all the answers. Like I said before the Romans have experienced this outbreak, we have documented a similar outbreak in this region in the 1950's.

I believe the bees are stressed, hot dry summers the United State received these past couple of years along with the lack of adequate moisture for the plants to produce nectar has caused the bees to scale their operations down.

But since you asked. The bees around the country are dying at an alarming rate. Some beekeepers have experienced losses over 60%. Beekeepers have been beaten down by an unknown disease. The name of the disease is Colony Collapse Disorder. By the way the Romans also had the same disease run through their colonies and gave it the same name.

We are happy for the press the industry is receiving about the importance of honey bees to our food chain. The disease today has no answer but many theories. One being the cell towers are causing the bees to loss their navigational bearings. Another theory stats that GMO, Genetically Modified Organism, have caused the bees to become disoriented. Those two are assuming the bees are losing their way home. By the way, bees fly up to 5 miles to collect nectar, pollen, and water for the colonies.

The other theories deal with the with miss use of miticides, antibiotics, and food supplements. These all hold some truth but no one theory holds all the answers. Like I said before the Romans have experienced this outbreak, we have documented a similar outbreak in this region in the 1950's.

I believe the bees are stressed, hot dry summers the United State received these past couple of years along with the lack of adequate moisture for the plants to produce nectar has caused the bees to scale their operations down.

Now if you don't mind, I will return to the wall right behind you.

Thank you Brutus for that most excellent bee report! I know that bees are important to my tomatoes, cucs, and peppers! I have high hopes for a bumper crop in my little garden this year.

But since you asked. The bees around the country are dying at an alarming rate. Some beekeepers have experienced losses over 60%. Beekeepers have been beaten down by an unknown disease. The name of the disease is Colony Collapse Disorder. By the way the Romans also had the same disease run through their colonies and gave it the same name.

We are happy for the press the industry is receiving about the importance of honey bees to our food chain. The disease today has no answer but many theories. One being the cell towers are causing the bees to loss their navigational bearings. Another theory stats that GMO, Genetically Modified Organism, have caused the bees to become disoriented. Those two are assuming the bees are losing their way home. By the way, bees fly up to 5 miles to collect nectar, pollen, and water for the colonies.

The other theories deal with the with miss use of miticides, antibiotics, and food supplements. These all hold some truth but no one theory holds all the answers. Like I said before the Romans have experienced this outbreak, we have documented a similar outbreak in this region in the 1950's.

I believe the bees are stressed, hot dry summers the United State received these past couple of years along with the lack of adequate moisture for the plants to produce nectar has caused the bees to scale their operations down.

• Billions of bees have mysteriously vanished since late last year in the U.S.
• Disappearing bees have also been reported in Europe and Brazil
• One-third of the U.S. diet depends on pollination, mostly by honeybees
• Some beekeepers are losing 50 percent of their bees to the disorder

Quote:

Go to work, come home.
Go to work, come home.
Go to work -- and vanish without a trace.
Billions of bees have done just that, leaving the crop fields they are supposed to pollinate, and scientists are mystified about why.

The phenomenon was first noticed late last year in the United States, where honeybees are used to pollinate $15 billion worth of fruits, nuts and other crops annually. Disappearing bees have also been reported in Europe and Brazil.

Commercial beekeepers would set their bees near a crop field as usual and come back in two or three weeks to find the hives bereft of foraging worker bees, with only the queen and the immature insects remaining. Whatever worker bees survived were often too weak to perform their tasks.

If the bees were dying of pesticide poisoning or freezing, their bodies would be expected to lie around the hive. And if they were absconding because of some threat -- which they have been known to do -- they wouldn't leave without the queen.

Since about one-third of the U.S. diet depends on pollination and most of that is performed by honeybees, this constitutes a serious problem, according to Jeff Pettis of the U.S. Agricultural Research Service.

We have a spray system on our house that goes off about 4 times a day spraying an organic pecticide. These have become quite popular in the last year or so. I wonder how much products like these are contributing to disappearing bees or could it be that aliens are snatching them for some reason?